jU:Ahu^.    IH!?  ^'BR/IRV- 


-   %a^  r^-C4j!c-r-i^  ^  ^^/f^^ 


Prom  the  Stand-Point  of  a  United  States  Consul  m  Europe. 


By  CHARLES  A.  PAGE,  M.  A. 


WASHINGTON    CITY: 

PHILP   &   SOLOMONS, 
1869. 


y  ^    — -"^ 


iA 


"  Ne  quis  invitus  civitate  muteter ;  neve  in  civitale  maneat  invitus.  Hcee  sunt  enim  fundamenta 
firmissima  nostrce  liber tatis,sui  quemque  Juris  et  reiinendi  et  dimittendi  esse  dorninum." — Cicero, 
Orat.  pro  Balbo,  cap.  13. 


ON      T  H.  E 


NATURALIZATION   QUESTION. 


By  CHARLES  A.  PAGE,  M.  A. 


WASHINGTOI^,  D.  C,  DECEBIBER  5, 1SC9. 


WASHINGTON,  D.  C: 

PHILP    &    SOLOMOi^S. 

1869. 


/'/ 


[The  following  letter  was  not  written  for  publication,  but  was 
printed  in  the  New  York  Times  January  18,  1869.  Had  it  been 
intended  for  print,  the  writer  would  have  been  more  careful  as 
to  its  style ;  he  thinks  he  would  have  made  it  briefer,  less  diifuse, 
and  have  stated  his  points  with  less  repetition  and  in  more 
logical  order.  He  does  not  revise  it  now,  because  he  has  not 
time.  He  gives  a  part  of  one  day — Sunday,  December  5th — to 
the  work  of  throwing  it  into  pamphlet  form,  supplemented, 
perhaps,  with  a  few  remarks  suggested  to  him  by  later  ex- 
perience. Eegretting  that  he  is  prevented  fi*om  a  more  ade- 
quate statement  and  treatment  of  facts,  which  he  believes  should 
be  regarded  as  an  important  element  in  the  consideration  of  the 
whole  subject  of  naturalizations — a  subject  that,  concededly, 
demands  legislation — he  has  only  to  add  here,  that  this  reprint 
appears  at  the  instance  of  several  gentlemen  especially  interested 
in  the  matter. — C,  A.  P.] 


JX 


fFrom  the  New  York  Times,  Januaiy  18, 1809.] 


OUR   NATURALIZATION   LAWS. 


Hoiu  tliey  are  vieived  abroad — Utter  wortJdessness  of  naturali- 
zation certificates  as  evidence  of  citizenship — Consequent  em- 
barrassments in  the  enforcement  of  the  rights  of  property — 
Letter  from  United  States  Consul  Page  to  Senator  Patterson, 
of  New  Hampshire. 

United  States  Consulate, 
Zurich,  Monday,  November  30, 1868. 
Hon.  James  W.  Patterson,  Hanover,  N.  H. 

Dear  Sir  :  That  the  respectable  portion  of  the  press 
should  be  so  unanimous  and  so  earnest  in  urging  a 
reform  in  our  system — or  rather  want  of  system — of 
naturalizations,  seems  to  me  to  be  a  very  hopeful  fact. 
Moreover,  I  think  the  papers  have  hit  on  a  most  essen- 
tial feature  of  any  reform,  by  pointing  out  with  such 
unanimity  that  United  States  courts  only  should 
issue  certificates  of  naturahzation.  That  inferior  State 
courts  should  make  United  States  citizens  is  an  anom- 
aly that  I  never  could  account  for ;  rather,  I  should 
say,  an  anomaly  that  is  so  absurd  on  the  face  of  it,  that 
I  wonder  it  has  been  tolerated  so  long. 


I  write  you  this  letter  upon  the  subject  of  naturali- 
zations in  order  to  briefly  discuss  it  in  its  bearings  upon 
our  relations  abroad,  where  some  of  our  naturalized  citi- 
zens are  concerned.  The  question  has  lately  assumed 
prominence  at  home  on  account  of  the  gigantic  frauds 
at  the  polls  recently  perpetrated  under  the  present  lax 
system.  Hence  it  has  been  discussed,  so  far  as  I  have 
seen,  only  as  it  affects  home  afl'airs.  It  has  been  abund- 
antly shown  that  the  fraudulent  naturalizations  now 
practiced  destro}^  the  purity  and  sacredness  of  the 
ballot-box ;  that  they  enable  unpatriotic  and  unscru- 
pulous politicians  to  achieve  dishonest  successes ;  that 
they  lower  the  popular  respect  for  the  law,  its  ofiicers, 
and  representatives ;  that,  by  affording  a  premium 
upon  rascality,  the}^  deter  honest  men  from  taking  an 
active  part  in  politics,  or  from  entering  upon  political 
careers  ;  that  they  have  always  inured  to  the  benefit 
of  the  party  of  rebellion  and  repudiation,  and  that  in 
the  nature  of  the  case  they  must  always  inure  to  the 
benefit  of  whatever  party  may  be  most  disposed  to 
enlist  fraud,  and  cater  to  ignorance  and  depravity. 
Surely  here  are  sufficient  grounds  for  demanding  a 
radical  reform.  But  let  me  now  present  the  case  in 
another  phase,  from  my  stand-point  as  a  Government 
ofiicer  abroad. 

In  Europe  to-day  our  certificates  of  naturalization 
carry  with  them  little  weight.  They  are  nearly  worth- 
less, so  far  as  afi^ording  any  recognized  status,  any  cer- 
tain protection,  to  their  holders.  It  is  true  that  they 
are  usually — not  always — received  in  the  nature  of  a 
passport,  permitting  transit  through  and  temporary 
domicile  in  European  countries.  Custom-house  offi- 
.cers,  policemen,    and   gendarmes,    receive    them  just 


as  tliey  do  certificates  from  the  authorities  of  the 
most  insignificant  communities,  that  the  bearer  Uves  at 
some  mentioned  place.  But  they  are  not  received  as 
a  badge  of  citizenship.  All  over  Europe,  courts  of 
law  doubt  them,  question  them,  often  sneer  at  them, 
and  rule  them  out  of  court!  And  herein  is  wherein  a 
change  ought  to  be  insisted  upon.  It  is  this  fact  that 
makes  the  naturalized  citizen,  when  in  Europe,  not  the 
equal  of  a  citizen  born  such  ;  the  same  rights  and  im- 
munities are  not  guarantied,  at  least  not  accorded,  to 
him. 

The  immense  emigration  from  the  continent  to  the 
United  States  leads  to  thousands  of  cases  of  disputed 
property,  mainly  inheritances,  between  naturalized  citi- 
zens of  the  United  States  and  parties  on  this  side  of  the 
ocean.  The  latter  are  often  relatives  who  would  take 
advantage  of  a  prolonged  absence  on  the  part  of  right- 
ful heirs  to  cheat  them  of  inheritances,  but  oftener  they 
are  the  authorities  of  the  communities  where  the  prop- 
erty is,  and  who,  as  my  experience  goes,  invariably 
fight  to  the  last  to  prevent  money  from  being  paid  to 
persons  resident  out  of  the  country.  These  authorities 
are  by  law  the  custodians  and  administrators  of  the 
estates  of  deceased  persons,  and  they  seem  to  me  to  be 
partial  to  claimants  living  in  their  own  communities. 
Holding  to  the  old  doctrine,  of  "born  a  citizen  always 
a  citizen,"  which,  owing  to  our  imperfect  naturalization 
treaties  they  are  still  able  to  do,  they  insist  upon 
deciding  all  such  cases  on  the  assumption  that  the 
United  States  naturalized  citizen  is  still  a  citizen  of 
their  community.  And  this  works  to  his  injury  in  a 
score  of  ways  which  I  need  not  now  detail. 

However,  I  must  remark  that  it  particularly  affects 


6 


all  questions  of  property  where  minors  and  trust  funds 
are  concerned.  I  know  cases  where  minors  born  in 
the  United  States  have  been  kept  out  of  their  rights 
for  years,  because  they,  as  well  as  their  deceased  fath- 
ers, (naturalized  United  States  citizens,)  were  regarded 
as  Swiss  citizens.  The  bar  to  the  money  being  turned 
over  at  once  to  the  legal  representative  of  the  minor 
is,  that  the  said  minor  mcuj  return  to  Switzerland  and 
become,  as  a  pauper,  a  charge  upon  the  community 
wdiere  his  father,  or  perhaps  grandfather,  was  born, 
notwithstanding  he,  and  perhaps  his  father,  were  born 
in  the  United  States !  And  so  the  propert}-  is  held 
against  such  a  contingenc}' — a  very  remote  contingency 
it  is! 

Without  a  more  bona  fide  system  of  naturahzation, 
we  cannot  effect  treaties  with  foreign  powers  that  shall 
23lace  our  naturalized  citizens  on  a  par  with  those  born 
such.  Until  such  treaties  are  effected,  we  do  not 
guarantee  a  naturalized  citizen  what  we  pretend  to  do 
when  we  give  him  a  certificate  of  naturalization.  Mr. 
Bancroft's  treaties,  admirable  as  they  are  in  many  re- 
spects— mainly  so,  however,  because  they  stamp  the 
right  of  expatriation  upon  international  law  as  an  in- 
tegral part  of  it,  and  satisfactory  as  they  are  from  the 
fact  that  they  are  a  gain  in  the  right  direction,  and 
from  the  fact  that  the}'  contain  about  all  that  we  can 
now  decently  ask  for — do  not  place  a  naturalized  citizen 
on  anything  like  equality  with  a  native-born  citizen. 
Yet  I  maintain  that  treaties  which  shall  do  this  can  be 
negotiated  with  all  nations  whenever  we  will  make 
the  conversion  of  an  alien  into  a  citizen  the  well- 
considered,  well-guarded,  well-proven,  weight}',  and 
solemn  thing  which  it  ought  to  be,  instead  of  the  hasty, 


trifling,  fraudulent,  and  farcical  thing  which  it  now  is. 
The  fault,  then,  does  not  lie  with  foreign  authorities. 
We  have  no  good  ground  of  complaint  against  them. 
The  fault  lies  in  ourselves,  that  we  issue  certificates  of 
naturalization  loosely  and  (notoriously)  fraudulently. 
So  long  as  it  is  a  known  fact  that  they  are  sold  in  New 
York  for  $2  apiece,  how  can  it  be  otherwise  than  that 
they  are  scouted  at  over  here  whenever  they  are  ad- 
duced as  proof  of  actual  United  States  citizenship? 
How  can  we  expect  them  to  be  respected  so  long  as  it 
is  notorious  that  hundreds  and  hundreds  of  adven- 
turers hold  them,  who  have  never  once  set  foot  on  our 
shores  ? 

It  is  not  a  more  sweeping  assertion  than  the  facts 
warrant,  for  me  to  say,  that  one-fourth,  perhaps  one- 
half,  of  the  itinerant  vagabonds,  swindlers,  '^confi- 
dence men"  and  "tramps,"  who  infest  Europe,  carry  as 
a  part  of  their  stock  in  trade  certificates  of  United 
States  naturalization.  These  imposters  often  escape 
detention  as  vagabonds,  or,  for  actual  offences,  the 
prison  itself,  by  pleading  their  American  citizenship. 
Again,  they  bring  the  ntime  of  American  citizen  into 
bad  repute,  so  that  often  worthy  men,  justly  entitled 
to  it,  if  poor  and  without  friends  on  the  spot,  are  made 
to  suffer  unjustly. 

I  believe  it  to  be  the  simple  truth,  that  there  are  five 
times  as  many  certificates  of  naturalization  extant  in 
Europe  as  there  are  naturalized  citizens  abroad  !  Is  it 
not  a  shame  that  rascals  the  world  over,  who  have 
never  learned  a  word  of  English,  are  able  to  clothe 
themselves  with  the  toga  of  United  States  citizenship  ? 
These  rascals  infest  our  consulates  and  legations. 
They  trump  up  all  sorts  of  more  or  less  plausible  stories ; 


but  in  the  end  they  always  want  a  gift  or  a  loan  of 
money,  a  certificate  of  character,  a  certificate  in  the 
nature  of  a  vise  of  their  naturalization  papers,  or  that 
the  consul  should  procure  their  release  from  some  un- 
pleasant situation  which  the  police  have  constrained 
them  to  occupy.  It  is  a  green  consul  who  heeds  their 
tales,  yet  I  must  confess  that  I  have  been  several  times 
imposed  upon  by  them ;  and  that  I  am  not  alone  in 
being  their  victim,  I  have  evidence,  in  the  fact  that 
having  detected  one,  I  retained  no  less  than  seven  cer- 
tificates of  character  wliich  he  had  somehow  procured 
from  as  many  United  States  consuls,  and  wliich  he 
handed  me  with  a  view  to  enlisting  my  sympathies. 
I  also  effectually  rendered  innocuous  his  certificate  of 
naturalization,  by  writing  a  few  words  in  red  ink 
across  a  certificate  to  its  genuineness  which  a  United 
States  minister  had  written  on  the  back  of  it,  to  which 
words  I  added  my  consular  seal,  after  which  I  returned 
to  him  the  paper.  My  clerks  tliereafter  put  him  by 
force  out  of  the  office,  and  I  thought  I  was  rid  of  him. 
But  the  police,  on  the  strength  of  my  words  in  red  ink, 
which  they  found  on  his  person,  arrested  him,  and  sent 
to  me  to  learn  about  him.  I  afterward  received  letters 
of  thanks  from  seven  United  States  consuls  and  one 
United  States  minister:  from  tlio  former  for  returning 
the  certificates  the}^  had  given  the  man,  and  from  the 
latter  for  my  having  destroyed  the  force  of  the  cer- 
tificate he  had  given  the  man. 

There  are  now  pending  in  this  consulate  thirteen 
cases  hinging  upon  certificates  of  naturalization.  If 
these  certificates  were  conceded  the  force  which  ought 
to  attach  to  them,  I  need  not  have  been  called  upon  to 
intervene.    Each  of  these  cases  involves  property.     In 


9  . 

the  end,  if  persistently  followed  up,  the  majority  of 
them  will  doubtless  be  justly  settled,  but  in  every 
case  it  will  be  only  after  a  vast  deal  of  trouble,  and 
"the  law's  delay,"  which  would  be  avoided  were  there 
a  settled  system  of  adjudication  in  such  cases,  based 
upon  a  just  naturalization  treaty,  which  could  be  nego- 
tiated, if  we  had  decent  naturalization  laws  decently 
enforced. 

One  feature  of  several  of  these  cases  is  most  remark- 
able. It  is  that  the  heirs  in  the  United  States  are 
considered  here  as  illegitimate  children,  and  therefore 
not  entitled  to  the  property,  and  are  declared  illegiti- 
mate because  the  father,  a  naturalized  United  States 
citizen,  did  not  notify  the  authorities  of  the  community 
where  he  was  born  of  the  fact  that  he  was  going  to 
get  married,  or  because  he  failed  to  have  the  birth, 
names,  and  baptisms  of  his  children  registered  in  the 
church  records  of  his  native  parish. 

The  remedy  and  cure  for  all  of  these  scandalous 
things  is  to  be  looked  for,  and  I  trust  may  be  speedily 
found,  in  what  I  have  already  suggested,  viz.,  a  national 
naturalization  law,  uniform  in  all  the  States,  and  ad- 
ministered by  United  States  courts  only. 

The  authorities,  large  and  small,  of  all  Europe  are 
ready  to  concede  the  right  of  expatriation  and  natural- 
ization, but  they  justly  demand  that  we  shall  give 
proper  proof  of  the  fact.  Since  Columbus  was  the 
first  American  "carpet-bagger,"  the  feudal  doctrine  of 
the  inalienability  of  citizenship  has  been  growing  more 
and  more  untenable,  until  it  is  now  become  absurd. 
So  that  does  not  stand  in  the  way.  And  with  a  treaty- 
stipulated  right  of  a  man  to  change  his  allegiance  will 
come  a  practical  concession,  in  every  possible  case,  on 


10 

the  part  of  the  foreign  authorities,  from  policemen  to 
prime  ministers,  of  the  fact  that  naturalized  citizens 
"are,  and  of  right  ouglit  to  be,"  on  a  par  with  citizens 
native  born. 

Here  let  me  suggest  some  things  that  ought  to  be 
made  law  by  Congress. 

An  alien  desiring  to  become  a  United  States  citizen 
should  first  make  written  application  to  the  United 
States  authorities  charged  with  naturalizations,  that  he 
wishes  to  be  naturalized.  His  application  should  be 
supported  by  affidavits  as  to  identity  and  period  of 
residence  in  the  United  States,  and  there  should  be  a 
minute  description  of  his  person  incorporated  in  his 
naturalization  certificate,  so  minute  that  for  a  score  of 
years  nobody  else  could  possibly  personate  him. 
These  affidavits  and  the  descri[)tion  of  person  should 
be  filed  in  a  United  States  court,  open  to  public  in- 
spection, and  to  counter-affidavits,  at  least  a  month 
before  the  certificate  of  naturalization  should  issue. 
He  should  not  vote  at  any  election  within  a  3^ear  after 
such  certificate  is  issued.  Thejact  of  any  naturaliza- 
tion^ together  with  a  copy  of  the  new  citizen^ s  applica- 
tion, of  his  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  United  States,  (for- 
swearing allegiance  to  his  native  country,)  of  the  de- 
scription of  his  person — i]i  short,  copies  of  all  the 
papers  in  the  case — should  be  certified  to  the  Secretary 
of  State,  to  be  filed  in  the  Department  of  State.  The 
Secretary  of  State  should  transmit  certified  copies  of  all 
these  to  the  United  States  minister  accredited  to  the  coun- 
try whence  the  new  citizen  emigrated,  with  instructions 
that  the  minister  should  notify  the  Government  of  such 
country  of  the  fact  of  such  naturalization,  at  the  same 
time  handing  to  it  cojnes  of  the  papers  in  the  case,  as 


11 

showing  %u  arrant  for  the  naturalization.  This  certifica- 
tion to  the  other  country  luoidd  be  but  decent  interna- 
tional courtesy.  If  we  take  a  citizen  of  Switzerlancl^ 
or  a  subject  of  Prussia,  and  transform  him  in  a  twink- 
ling into  a  full-fledged  citizen  of  the  United  States  of 
America,  surely  it  is  but  a  polite,  proper,  a7id  fair  thing 
to  notify  the  other  nation  concerned  of  the  fact !  At 
present  we  fling  insults  into  the  face  of  other  nations, 
by  the  outrageous  way  in  ivhich  ive  per?nit  our  certifi- 
cates of  naturalization — signed,  in  blank  and  by  the 
ream — to  pass  into  circulation,  as  things  to  be  purchased 
in  the  market,  and  at  so  cheap  a  rate  that  anyliody  can 
afford  the  luxury.  They  are  right  when  they  refuse  to 
accept  such  trash  as  proof  of  United  States  citizenship. 
Again,  if  the  record  of  every  naturalization  were  on 
fie  in  the  Department  of  State,  and  at  the  capital  of  the 
other  nation  concerned,  it  would  be  of  vast  benefit,  as 
a  thing  of  reference  and  evidence  in  controversies, 
luhere  the  issues  involve  the  cpiestion  of  citizenship  and 
allegiance.  At  present  there  are  a  multitude  of  suck 
controversies  constantly  arising,  always  pending,  almost 
never  settled.  Of  course  a  majority  of  these  are  never 
heard  of  in  the  United  States,  for  it  is  in  foreign  coun- 
tries that  they  arise,  before  foreign  authorities  that  they 
are  presented,  and  it  is  by  these  that  they  are  decided. 

Now,  under  the  system  that  I  suggest,  such  ques- 
tions would  very  seldom  arise,  and  any  and  all  that 
would  come  up  would  be  speedil}^  and  satisfactorily 
adjudicated,  I  hardly  need  to  add,  that  the  system 
would  be  a  God-send  to  United  States  consuls.  It  would 
not  only  relieve  them  of  much  vexation  and  embar- 
rassment, by  lessening  the  number  of  instances  where 
they  are  asked  to  intervene,  but  also  by  giving  them 


12 


solid  ground  on  which  to  stand,  either  in  refusing  to 
intervene,  or,  where  warranted,  in  pressing  their  in- 
tervention. 

The  Republican  party  has  many  and  strong  incen- 
tives for  inaugurating  the  reform  demanded.  Among 
them  are — that  it  would  be  for  the  general  welfare ; 
that  it  would  be  a  great  boon  to  naturalized  citizens, 
since  it  would  tend  to  a  better  protection  to  them 
outside  of  United  States  jurisdiction ;  and,  again, 
that  it  would  be  a  great  stroke  of  party  policy  and 
foresight,  since  it  would  make  more  assured  its  future 
triumphs  at  the  polls.  Its  ascendency,  as  a  party,  is 
at  stake,  because  it  has  not  had  the  wisdom,  the  cour- 
age, or  the  time  to  face,  master,  and  adjust  this  question. 
Had  Congress  seen  to  it  five  years  ago,  New  York 
would  now  be  a  Republican  city,  and  cities  like  Chicago 
would  not  be  in  such  imminent  peril  of  going  over  to  the 
enemy.  One  would  suppose  that  these  considerations 
would  appeal  irresistibly  to  every  Republican  member 
of  Congress. 

Besides,  there  is  a  fine  chance  for  something  better 
than  spread-eagle  buncombe  for  such  members  as  have 
a  super-sufficiency  of  w^ordy  eloquence.  Let  such  de- 
scant on  the  sanctity  of  the  ballot-box  and  on  the 
practicability,  by  making  naturahzations  bona  fide,  of 
properly.protecting  naturalized  citizens  the  world  over. 
Indeed,  if  the  name  of  "American  citizen  ''  is  the  proud 
thing  we  are  in  the  habit  of  flattering  ourselves  it  is — if 
it  be  the  modern  equivalent  of  the  old  "  Civis  Romanus 
sum,"' — we  should  guarantee  its  possessor  the  security 
and  dignity  which  belong  to  such  a  title. 

Judicious  legislation  upon  the  question  will  not 
alienate   from  the   party  any  portion  of  the  "foreign 


13 


vote."  All  intelligent  naturalized  citizens  will  hold 
their  acquired  citizenship  as  a  thing  of  more  worth 
than  they  do  now.  Nor  will  a  stricter  law,  with  stricter 
enforcement,  be  obnoxious  to  the  intelligent  among 
aliens  who  may  desire  to  become  citizens.  They  will 
see  that  it  will  enhance  their  dignity  at  home  and 
their  dignity  and  security  abroad.  Moreover — and  this 
luould  Biveeten  the  dose  to  the  congressional  palate,  and 
insure  its  easier  acceptance  by  the  stomach  of  the  great 
public — with  a  better-guarded  system,  we  could  well  afford 
to  dispense  ivith  one  or  tiuo  years  of  the  period  of  previous 
residence  in  the  country  now  required,  and  to  dispense  alto- 
gether with  the  declaration  of  intention  to  become  a  citizen. 
I  had  no  thought  of  writing  at  such  length  when  I 
began.  And  yet  I  have  but  imperfectly  touched  upon 
such  branches  of  the  subject  as  I  thought  to  write 
about,  while  I  have  allowed  myself  to  refer  to  some 
that  I  did  not  intend  to  treat  of.  If  I  did  not  hope 
that  some  of  the  suggestions  I  make  would  be  of  use, 
I  would  not  write  at  all  on  the  subject. 
Yours,  very  truly, 

CiiAS.  A.  Page, 

United  States  Consul. 


The  following  communication  appeared  in  the  New 

York  Times  the  succeeding  day.     It   explains   itself, 

and  since  it  bears  directly  upon  the  subject  in  hand,  is 

incorporated  here : 

The  Imvs  of  Naturalization  in  this  country  and  in  Switzerland — 
Letter  from  the  Swiss  Consul. 

No.  23  John  St.,  Wednesday,  Jan.  19,  1869. 
To  the  Editor  of  the  New  York  Times: 

In  your  valuable  paper  of  yesterday  I  have  read  an 
interesting  letter  of  Charles  A.  Page,  Esq.,  United 


14 


States  consul   at   Zurich,     Allow  me  to  make  a  few 
observations. 

Respecting  the  laws  of  naturalization  in  the  United 
States  I  cannot  take  the  liberty  to  make  any  observa- 
tions, being  myself  still  an  alien.  Only  one  thing  has 
always  struck  me  as  curious :  it  is  the  wording  of  the 
declaration  paper,  generally  called  first  paper,  by 
which  an  alien  declares  his  intention  to  become  a  citi- 
zen of  the  United  States,  and  is  at  the  same  time 
obliged  by  oath  to  renounce  allegiance  to  his  own 
country ;  and  as  he  can  only  become  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States  two  years  after  this  declaration,  may  I 
ask  you  to  what  nation  he  belongs  during  those  two 
years?  De  facto,  during  those  two  years  he  belongs 
to  no  nation,  and  is  what  we  call  in  Switzerland  a 
"Heimaths  lose."  It  appears  to  me  that  the  alien,  in 
making  his  declaration,  should  only  promise  that  he 
would  renounce  allegiance  to  his  own  country  when  he 
has  really  been  admitted  a  citizen  of  the  United  States. 

Mr.  Page  is  right  when  he  says  that  a  Swiss  citizen 
remains  always  a  Swiss  citizen,  even  when  naturalized 
in  a  foreign  country  ;  but  he  has  a  right  to  renounce  his 
own  country  by  a  speciai  act  of  renunciation,  which 
must  be  recorded  in  Switzerland. 

I  am  aware  that  there  are  often  claims  made  in  Swit- 
zerland by  descendants  of  Swiss  citizens  deceased  in 
the  United  States,  and  which  claims  are  sometimes  dis- 
puted when  the  marriage  of  their  parents  had  not  been 
regularly  admitted  and  recorded  in  the  parish  in  Swit- 
zerland to  which  they  belonged,  and  even  the  birth  of 
the  children  ought  to  have  been  registered  in  Switzer- 
land. This  arises  from  an  old  institution  existing  in 
Switzerland  called  "Bourgeoisie,"  say  community,  an 
institution  unknown  in  the  United  States.  Every  Swiss 
belongs  to  a  Bourgeoisie,  and  has  the  right,  in  case  of 
misfortune  or  old  age,  when  poor,  to  be  maintained  by 
said  community,  and  on  that  account  marriages  of  Swiss 
citizens  in  a  foreign  country  are  not  always  recognized  ; 


15 

at  all  events,  tliey  must,  as  a  general  rule,  be  allowed 
by  the  authorities  of  the  community  to  which  they 
belong,  and  to  obtain  said  consent  many  formalities  are 
often  required  to  be  made,  which  formalities  are  so 
troublesome  that  many  Swiss  citizens  prefer  not  to 
make  them. 

The  legalization  of  a  certificate  of  marriage  by  a 
Swiss  consul  proves  only  that  the  marriage  is  legal  in 
the  foreign  country  v/ here  the  marriage  has  taken  place, 
but  does  not  bind  the  authorities  in  Switzerland  to  con- 
sent to  it.  No  doubt  many  hardships  may  be  the  con- 
sequence of  these  laws  to  legal  heirs  in  the  United 
States,  but  Switzerland  has  the  right  to  make  her  own 
laws,  and  the  great  facility  given  in  the  United  States 
to  contract  marriage  (often  improvident  marriages) 
without  consent  of  papa  or  mamma,  and  especially  the 
late  decision  given  in  a  court  in  this  State  in  a  cele- 
brated law- suit  respecting  the  validity  of  a  marriage, 
will  not,  I  believe,  induce  the  government  of  Switzer- 
land to  change  its  laws,  always  fearing  that  in  course 
of  time  many  paupers  would  return  to  Switzerland  and 
become  a  heavy  expense  on  the  Bourgeoisie. 

Please  to  accept  the  assurance  of  my  high  considera- 
tion, your  obedient  servant, 

Ls.  Ph.  De  Luze, 
Consul  of  Siuitzerland  at  New  York. 


"Historicus,"  (Vernon  Harcourt,  M.  P.,)  the  noted 
contributor  to  the  London  Times,  forcibly  remarked, 
when  discussing  the  subject  of  citizenship,  as  follows  : 

"Before  the  American  Government  can  urge  any  de- 
'  mands  against  foreign  governments  they  have  a  good 

*  deal  to  do  at  home.    They  have  first  to  settle  forthem- 

*  selves  a  law  of  expatriation  for  their  own  subjects, 
'  which  at  present  they  do  not  possess.  When  they 
'  have  done  this,  they  will  at  all  events  not  be  open  to 
'  the  retort,  '  Physician,  heal  thyself.'    But  there  is  a  yet 


16 

'  more  material  point  which  they  have  to  settle,  and  that  is 
*  the  question  of  their  own  citizenship.  The  ivhole  of  the 
'  American  law  of  citizenship  is  in  a  state  of  inextricable 
'  confusion  J  ^ 

The  justness  of  the  first  part  of  this  quotation  may 
be  questioned,  but  that  portion  of  it  which  the  writer 
hereof  itaUcizes  is  only  too  true. 


The  subjoined  extract  from  a  circular,  dated  Oct. 
14, 1869,  addressed  by  the  Secretary  of  State  to  diplo- 
matic agents  and  consuls,  clearly  presents  a  branch 
of  the  subject,  and  seems  to  be  pertinent  in  this  con- 
nection, especially  as  it  treats  of  what  might  be  termed. 
lap>sed  citizenship  : 

' '  The  official  action  of  the  representatives  of  the 
'  United  States  may  also  be  asked  in  foreign  lands  in 
'  favor  of  natives  thereof  who  have  been  naturalized 
'  in  the  United  States.  Should  passports  or  other  pro- 
'  tection  be  asked  for  by  such  persons,  it  will  be  the  duty 
'  of  the  officer  to  satisfy  himself  that  they  have  done 
'  nothing  to  forfeit  their  acquired  rights.  For  a  natu- 
'  ralized  citizen  may,  by  returning  to  his  native  coun- 
'  try  and  residing  there  with  an  evident  intent  to  re- 
'  main,  or  by  accepting  offices  there  inconsistent  with 
'  his  adopted  citizenship,  or  by  concealing  for  a  length 
'  of  time  the  fact  of  his  naturalization  and  passing 
'  himself  as  a  citizen  or  subject  of  his  native  country, 
'  until  occasion  may  make  it  his  interest  to  ask  the 
'  intervention  of  the  country  of  his  adoption,  or  in 
'  other  ways  which  may  show  an  intent  to  abandon  his 
'  acquired  rights,  so  far  resume  his  original  allegiance,  as 
*  to  absolve  the  government  of  his  adopted  country  from 
'  the  obligation  to  protect  him  as  a  citizen  while  he 
'  remains  in  his  native  land. 

'  Cautious  scrutiny  is  enjoined  in  such  cases,  because 
'  evidence  has  been  accumulating  in  this  department 


17 


for  some  years,  that  many  aliens  seek  naturalization 
in  the  United  States  without  any  design  of  subjecting 
themselves  by  permanent  residence  to  the  duties  and 
burdens  of  citizenship,  and  solely  for  the  purpose  of 
returning  to  their  native  country  and  fixing  their 
domicile  and  pursuing  business  therein,  relying  on 
such  naturalization  to  evade  the  obligations  of  citi- 
zenship to  the  country  of  their  native  allegiance  and 
actual  habitation.  To  allow  such  pretensions  would 
be  to  tolerate  a  fraud  upon  both  the  governments, 
enabling  a  man  to  enjoy  the  advantages  of  two  na- 
tionalities and  to  escape  the  duties  and  burdens  of 
each.'' 

The  Secretary  apparently  had  more  especially  in 
view  the  avoidance  of  diplomatic  complications  be- 
tween nations,  while  the  writer  thought  particularly  of 
abuses  of  naturalizations  abroad,  which,  seldom  lead- 
ing to  diplomatic  action,  affect  only  individuals — and 
our  national  reputation.  Nor  do  the  writer's  observa- 
tions show  that  any  proportion  of  those  holding  certifi- 
cates of  naturalization,  which  should  not  be  regarded, 
obtained  them  solely  with  a  view  to  returning  to  their 
native  country,  and  by  their  aid  escaping  its  burdens. 
Most  never  expected  to  return,  yet  have  done  so. 
Again,  the  Secretary  does  not  specify  fraudulently 
obtained  naturalization  papers,  (other  than  the  fraud 
of  intent  to  return,)  nor  the  cases  where  a  certificate 
was  rightfully  obtained,  but  is  now  held  by  another 
person  than  the  one  to  whom  it  was  issued. 

The  fact  that  there  are  countless  instances  of  double 
or  interchangeable  citizenship,  and  consequent  "fraud 
upon  both  governments,''  is  palpable  to  every  United 
States  consul  in  Europe  who  has  eyes,  and  most  consuls 
required  such  instructions  for  daily  guidance  ;  the  more 
2 


18 

so  as  what  has  been  called  above  "la[)sed  citizenship'' 
is  a  thing  little  understood.  Indeed,  when  and  where 
has  it  ever  before  been  authoritatively  promulgated? 

The  doctrine  so  well  stated  in  the  extract,  that 
adopted  citizenship  may  lapse  without  any  declaration 
of  renunciation  by  the  individual,  no  one  can  doubt  to 
be  sound  ;  but  should  not  legislation  as  well  as  Depart- 
ment instructions  define  to  what  extent  and  in  what 
instances  it  should  obtain?  Would  not  such  legisla- 
tion render  more  easy  the  negotiation  of  corresponding 
treaty  stipulations  ? 

Ought  not  there  to  be  some  tribunal  to  decide  when 
any  citizenship  has  lapsed?  Would  it  not  be  well  that 
United  States  consuls,  when  it  comes  to  their  knowl- 
edge that  an  adopted  citizen,  by  reason  of  any  of  the 
circumstances  stated  above,  has  ceased  to  have  any 
claim  upon  his  adopted  government,  should  so  report, 
and  the  fact  be  declared  by  competent  authority? 

In  short,  is  it  not  practicable,  somehow,  to  have  a 
record  somewhere,  a  bare  reference  to  which  shall  de- 
termine to  what  country  a  man  owes  allegiance,  and 
make  it  possible  to  hold  him  and  limit  him  to  only  one 
allegiance  at  a  time?  But  this  cannot  be  done  so  long 
as  certificates  of  naturalization  are  so  cheap. 

To  conclude,  in  a  nut-shell,  let  there  be  a  natural- 
ization law  enacted  that  shall  reduce  to  the  minimum 
fraudulent  naturalizations,  and  let  it  further  provide,  that 
each  naturalization  shall  he  of  record  in  the  Department 
of  State,  and  he  notijied  to  the  other  government  concerned. 

If  it  is  objected  that  the  two  features  specified  would 
be  too  cumbersome  and  expensive,  the  reply  is,  that  it 
would  not  be  a  difficult  thing  to  organize  and  adminis- 
ter a  system  based  upon  them,  which  system  should 


19 


involve  no  new  officials  other  than  a  few  additional 
clerks  in  the  State  Department,  and  that  no  amount  of 
expense  that  it  could  possibly  involve  should  for  an 
instant  stand  against  its  adoption,  if  thereby  any  of  the 
good  results  which  it  is  believed  would  follow  should 
be  attained. 


^  ^  THE  LIBRARY 

^^6S    UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 

J^  -J  Santa  Barbara 


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